


Veränderung

by Pixial



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Dragon!Bull, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Gore, Suppprtive boyfriends, Transformation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-14 09:59:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13005306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pixial/pseuds/Pixial
Summary: Bull accidentally ingests some dragon's blood and finds out a little bit more of his ancestry.





	Veränderung

**Author's Note:**

  * For [hobbitdragon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hobbitdragon/gifts).



At first, he’d thought he was getting sick. As shocking as it was, the Iron Bull wasn’t actually immune to illness. And it even made sense that he was sick for once.

After all, there had to be some consequences for ingesting dragon blood.

Granted, he hadn’t done it on purpose. Blood getting splattered everywhere was common in battle, especially given his preferred tactics. But dragons had a lot of blood to splatter, and with that much mess came accidents.

And honestly a bit of fever, rash, and achiness was chump change next to the fact he’d fought a dragon and _won_.

But that was before the rash turned to scales.

Bull had tried to hide it at first, brushing it off as a peculiarly colored bit of dried skin. That happened to be spreading down his body. Dorian had frowned at him, of course, but Dorian frowned at a lot of things. No big deal. Bull just joked that maybe Qunari were part dragon after all.

But now, amid torn and bloodied cloth and splintered wood…. That joke didn’t seem so funny. Surrounded by the ruins of his room, Bull was forced to admit something was very wrong. He was changing and it terrified him.

It started with a headache and a nap. The headache stayed through his dreams, painting them with poison and fog and screams. Hands bearing blood blades reached for him, and he couldn’t move away. Fear clutched at him regardless of his hoarse shouting that it was a dream, that it was always a dream. He’d had this nightmare and countless others like it. But this was the first time fire rose from the fog, licking at his flesh and burning into his back. The pain was too much to bear, and he woke up screaming.

Only for the scream to be choked off by a much, much colder horror as he caught his reflection in the ridiculously oversized mirror Dorian insisted on having across from the bed.

Scales gleamed under the lamp light, purple to green and back. A single, golden serpentine eye stared back at his frozen visage. His horns were more or less the same, but rising above them in the mirror were… Were

 _Wings_. 

Great, leathery things that, when he rose a trembling hand to feel along his back, Bull realized were sprouted on either side of his spine. Right above the something he was praying to whatever was listening wasn’t a tail.

Bull grit his teeth and fought through the shock to approach the mirror and make a thorough examination. There were three possibilities for this, and as he felt the ridges of scales along his brow and spikes along his shoulders, he was forced to rule out a very elaborate prank. He staunchly refused to consider the spectre of madness-- he may be Tal Vashoth but he was still the Iron Bull. Or so he hoped.

That left the growing possibility that was real.

Fuck.

He turned around to confirm the existence of the tail-- and damn it, _yes_ it was a tail-- and he stopped cold as he saw the wreckage of the bed. 

The bedcovers were torn to shreds and covered in blood, as though a gang of wild cats had been brawling in the sheets. The bedposts had gouges in them, massive claw marks that did as much damage as a war axe.

And since he was the only person in the room… Bull felt a chill and was just grateful that he’d been alone in bed for once. And on the heels of that thought came another.

_Dorian._

How would his lover take this?? Bull was terrified, but to see it from the outside? The word _monster_ creeped through his mind, and he shivered.

It was a word he was familiar with, one that had been spat at him over and over. He had been fine with it, taking it and making it his own. A mark of pride.

But now… Now the word applied in truth. And he didn’t think he could handle Dorian looking at him in fear or revulsion. 

He started for the door. He needed time to calm down and think. Figure this out before someone shot him or he accidentally hurt someone--

“ _Amatus_? Are you alright in there?”

Bull cursed under his breath and recoiled. Of all the timing… 

Dorian knocked on the door, hard. And Bull could just picture his expression of concerned impatience. “Cole already flitted by the library to tell me I had to visit you, so don’t bother pretending you’re out.”

Bull scowled and briefly considered running out the other door, but that way led to the tavern and eventual mass panic and probably monster hunt. Not a valid option.

Besides. Knowing Dorian, he’d blast the doors off its hinges if he didn’t get an answer.

“Iron Bull! I am not above setting fire to the door! What is going on?”

Despite his fear and panic, Bull couldn’t help but huff a small laugh at his lover’s predictably volatile nature. His soon to be former lover, he thought with a pang in his chest. No way would Dorian willingly stay, and Bull didn’t blame him.

“Bull!” Dorian’s voice began to carry a panic of its own. “I swear to you if you don’t--”

“Hang on,” Bull called, startled by the growl in his voice. He unlocked the door, wincing as his _fucking tail_ smacked into the dresser.

Dorian burst into the room as soon as the lock clicked. “Really, Bull, you worri-- _Maker’s breath what the fuck?_ ”

Bull wanted to shrink and hide as he watched Dorian’s face blanch, and he felt cracks begin at the edges of his heart. Dorian wouldn’t stay, no one would. 

He could only guess at what was running through Dorian’s head as he stared at the terrible scene. Bull standing in the middle of the room, bed torn asunder… Fucking _wings._

“I… I take this is more than a headache…” Dorian said faintly, leaning back against the wall like it was the only thing keeping him up. Bull sympathized. 

“... Yeah. Uh. Surprise?” 

Dorian recovered enough to give Bull a flat look at the weak attempt at humor. Bull merely waited for the hammer to drop, preparing himself for heartbreak. 

But he forgot that though he could predict Dorian’s moods, the man himself was still filled with surprises. 

“You do realize you’re going to cause a significant stir when we go to Val Royeaux next month for our anniversary.”

Bull blinked. “Uh.”

Dorian shook his head and pushed off of the wall. “I’m not going to pretend that this isn’t shocking. After all, it’s a _little_ perturbing to suddenly have a dragon for one’s paramour. But at this point, there’s been enough weird shit around that this is at least par for the course.”

Bull blinked again, his knees giving out as he sat heavily on the ruined bed. Dorian drew close.

“May I?” he asked softly. Bull hesitated but nodded, and Dorian lifted a hand to his cheek. To his relief, Bull could still feel the warmth of his fingers brushing against his skin. Scales. Whatever. 

They remained that way for a long moment, looking at each other and wondering what to say. Bull placed his hand over Dorian’s, grateful that, at least, felt familiar.

“Dorian, I… I understand if this is too much  
..” he started before his words failed him. 

“I’m not leaving,” came the reply, with a quiet ferocity that stunned Bull. “Don’t you _dare_ try to talk me into leaving for my own safety or whatever bullshit reason you’re about to say.”

Since that had been in the back of Bull’s mind, he wisely held his tongue. Dorian got smoky when he was well and truly annoyed. 

“You look different, but you’re still you, yes?”

Bull nodded, feeling more than a little overwhelmed. “Uh… Yeah. More or less…? Just….”

“Rather draconic?”

“... Yeah. That.” 

Dorian sat next to him and pursed his lips. It it weren’t for the faint tremor in his hand still pressed to Bull’s cheek, Bull would’ve thought him completely unaffected.

“You’ve always been a bit of a dragon on the inside,” he said contemplatively. “And I have to say… This… shift… isn’t exactly unattractive.”

Bull snorted at that, the edges of hysteria softening. “Didn’t know scales did it for you.”

“Hush,” Dorian admonished with a prim twitch of his mustache. “I’ve always been rather fond of things that shine.”

That got a laugh out of Bull, and Dorian smiled with a hint of triumph before his eyes grew gentle. He leaned against Bull and touched his arm. Bull’s wings acted of their own accord to furl about his lover in a soft embrace. 

“We’ll figure this out, _amatus_. Together. I promise,” he said softly, almost a whisper.

Bull sighed and moved his arm to join the wing about Dorian’s shoulder. “.... I’m scared,” he admitted. The words tasted like dust in his mouth but there was a strange relief in releasing them.

“To be honest, so am I,” Dorian said. “But we can make it work.”

“... Thank you, Dorian.”

“What are boyfriends for?” Dorian cracked a lopsided grin. “I suppose I’m going to need to fetch our dear Lady Inquisitor so we can figure out how to break this to the others.”

Bull made a face. “Shit.”

“I suspect the worst that comes from her will be a series of dragon puns when she figures out you’re not dying.”

I know,” Bull said, still grimacing. Adelaide Trevelyan was fun and a great friend. With a truly terrible sense of humor. Running away was starting to seem like a viable option once more.

Dorian laughed. It was high and slightly brittle, but Bull appreciated the effort nonetheless. “I’ll protect you,” he said. “Or at least distract her.”

“Huh. My hero.” 

Dorian’s grin grew softer and his head pressed against Bull’s shoulder. Bull noted with mild interest that he could smell Dorian’s cologne with more clarity than normal. 

“We’ll get through this,” Dorian whispered, taking Bull’s hand in his.

Bull gripped Dorian like a lifeline, thumb brushing the back of his hand. “Together?”

“Together.”

**Author's Note:**

> Gonna be honest, I just wanted a dragon Bull. The magic theory is pretty vague beyond that.
> 
> Not pictured: Sera falling on her ass and laughing at the tail.
> 
> Sorry the tags are so sparse! Mobile's changed format and you can no longer input your own. I'll need to edit when I have a computer!


End file.
